City of Stockton awarded $8 million grant to help drug-affected offenders turn around

The City of Stockton, Friends Outside, and local partners have received an $8 million grant to provide prosocial support, mental health and substance abuse services for up to 650 people with Proposition 47-eligible offenses in San Joaquin County.

“Our goal with this funding is to give those identified by the courts the support they need to make better choices and to get them into jobs and housing,” said Michael Sorensen, executive director of Friends Outside. “Addiction is a medical condition that leads to poor choices and social stigmatization that makes it hard for people to recover. We believe everyone deserves a second chance, and that is exactly what this funding gives people.”

The California Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC) announced the grant on September 11, 2025 as part of the release of $127 million in funding statewide. The City of Stockton’s Office of Violence Prevention (OVP) partnered with Friends Outside, San Joaquin County, and Stanislaus State Stockton Campus to apply for the funding.

“We are flipping the script on justice-involvement by treating trauma, not just behavior,” said Lora Larson, director of the City of Stockton Office of Violence Prevention. “We know that substance use and criminal behavior are often symptoms of deeper issues like trauma, instability, and systemic neglect. This funding allows us to address those issues.”

The grant funds a new initiative dubbed REDIRECT (Restorative Engagement and Diversion through Incarceration Reduction, Care & Treatment. The program will focus on youth and adults ages 15–35 with Proposition 47-eligible offenses, typically nonviolent drug crimes.

Passed by California voters in November 2014, Proposition 47 changed some nonviolent drug and property offenses from felonies to misdemeanors, with the goal of reducing California’s prison population. It redirects the saved funds into treatment programs intended to reduce recidivism by treating root causes of crime and providing alternatives.

Stockton was one of 12 California cities and counties to receive the maximum $8 million funding amount. This is only the second time a qualified San Joaquin County applicant has received Proposition 47 funding since the inception of the grant program in 2017.

Friends Outside will provide case management, housing support, emergency relocation, substance abuse interventions, and job search resources such as interview outfits and bus passes. Friends Outside will also implement LEAP (Leveraging Employment through Apprenticeship Program), a new six-week paid job assistance program. LEAP will include hands-on training in resume-writing, job-searching, and interviewing, as well as job placement services.

The San Joaquin County Public Defender’s Office will hire a court liaison to identify potential participants. San Joaquin Behavioral Health will provide clinical care, therapy, and crisis stabilization. OVP will coordinate the overall project.

Stanislaus State Stockton Campus will provide program data collection and evaluation.

“Stanislaus State at our Stockton Campus is proud to join this vital initiative to strengthen pathways to health, hope and restorative justice in our region, “said Stanislaus State President Britt Rios-Ellis.

Services will begin once contracts are executed.